Senate Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow said Wednesday that the farm bill will come to the floor next month after the Senate finishes a measure on equal pay for women. Click here to read the Farm Bill update from the current issue of Progressive Dairyman.

Alex Geiser Hilbert, Wisconsin Dairy Specialist Vita Plus

Tony Grzemski Fulton, Illinois Regulatory Affairs Coordinator Agri-King

Margaret Winsryg Twin Falls, Idaho Dairy Nutritionist/Professional Liaison Calibrate Technology

Idaho Milk Products, which processes tens of millions of pounds of milk annually, used several hundred thousand pounds of nitric acid as a cleaning agent in 2009. When treated, nitric acid produces nitrate compounds, which the company released to the local wastewater treatment plant. Idaho Milk Products is required under the Toxics Release Inventory to report toxic chemical releases. According to EPA, the company failed to report the treatment and disposal of nitric acid and nitrate compounds in 2009.

Oregon's farmers, ranchers and fishing industry grossed a record $5.2 billion in 2011 – thanks to higher commodity prices, according to a report by the Oregon State University (OSU) Extension Service. Click here to view the report. Sales were up 19.1 percent from a revised $4.4 billion in 2010, the largest percentage increase since a 20.6 percent jump in 1979, said Bart Eleveld, the OSU Extension Service economist who compiled the report.

The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) has announced the selection of Rochelle Ripp of Lodi as Wisconsin’s 65th Alice in Dairyland. The announcement was made at the Finale Program in Grant County following three days of interviews, speeches, agri-business tours and an impromptu question and answer session.

Earlier this month, the Idaho Bankers Association (IBA) held its 2012 Agricultural Bankers Education Conference. IBA President/CEO Dawn Justice said that it's challenging to draw an overall conclusion from the conference about how agriculture will intersect with the overall economy in the near future. "There are a lot of things happening [in the global economy] and 'uncertainty' is still the watch word," said Justice. "There are a lot of 'What if?' scenarios." Justice emphasized that it's important for every farmer to keep up with what's happening in the global market. "That impacts everything. Farmers have to be more sophisticated -- there's a whole lot more to consider than what they had to in the past."